U.S. patent number 4,568,300 [Application Number 06/691,748] was granted by the patent office on 1986-02-04 for toy team racing set.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Marvin Glass & Associates. Invention is credited to Harry Disko, Russell G. Rasmussen.
United States Patent |
4,568,300 |
Rasmussen , et al. |
February 4, 1986 |
Toy team racing set
Abstract
A toy slot car racing set is provided with linked, lead and
follower car teams. The link is resilient and has a width
substantially greater than the thickness, to provide some
resistance to lateral flexing. Tight fits between a pin and
aperture connection of each end of a link to a respective vehicle
generally maintains the connected end of the link in a fixed
angular relationship to the vehicle.
Inventors: |
Rasmussen; Russell G. (Skokie,
IL), Disko; Harry (South Barrington, IL) |
Assignee: |
Marvin Glass & Associates
(Chicago, IL)
|
Family
ID: |
24777802 |
Appl.
No.: |
06/691,748 |
Filed: |
January 15, 1985 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
446/129; 104/305;
446/445; 446/446; 446/457; 463/62 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63H
17/264 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A63H
17/00 (20060101); A63H 17/26 (20060101); A63H
033/26 (); A63H 018/14 () |
Field of
Search: |
;446/446,444,445,465,431,451,455,454,129,457,433 ;273/86B |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Yu; Mickey
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Pacocha; John S.
Claims
What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent
is:
1. A toy race set comprising:
a motorized toy lead vehicle having a wheel base of a predetermined
length;
a freewheeling toy follower vehicle having a wheel base
substantially the same length as the wheel base of the lead
vehicle;
a resilient link of a length greater than the length of the wheel
base of either vehicle; and
means connecting the link adjacent one end to the back of the
motorized vehicle and adjacent the other end to the front of the
free wheeling vehicle.
2. A toy race set comprising:
a motorized toy lead vehicle;
a track having a slot;
a depending guide pin on the motorized vehicle engaging the
slot;
a freewheeling toy follower vehicle;
a resilient link; and
means connecting the link adjacent one end to the back of the
motorized vehicle and adjacent the other end to the front of the
free wheeling vehicle.
3. The toy race set of claim 2 in which the track has an upwardly
extending sidewall.
4. The toy race set of claim 1 in which the link has a
substantially greater width than thickness.
5. The toy race set of claim 4 in which the width is at least twice
the thickness.
6. The toy race set of claim 1 in which the link is made of
rubber.
7. The toy race set of claim 1 in which the link is made of black
Kraton polymer 3200.
8. The toy race set of claim 7 in which the link has a hardness of
Shore 70-75.
9. The toy race set of claim 2 in which the wheel base of the lead
vehicle and the follower vehicle are substantially the same and the
length of the link is greater than the wheel base.
10. The toy race set of claim 3 in which the cars have bodies made
of a relatively hard plastic material and wheels made of a
relatively soft, high coefficient of friction, material and the
bodies extend outward of the wheels.
11. The toy race set of claim 1 in which the means connecting the
link to the vehicle generally maintains the link in a fixed angular
relationship to the vehicle at the connected end.
12. The toy race set of claim 1 in which the free wheeling vehicle
has a body substantially the same as the body of the lead vehicle
but without a motor and includes a weight added for stability to
compensate for the omitted motor.
13. The toy race set of claim 2 in which the free wheeling vehicle
includes a magnet that cooperates with the track for added
stability.
14. The toy race set of claim 2 in which the link has a
substantially greater width than thickness.
15. The toy race set of claim 14 in which the width is at least
twice the thickness.
16. The toy race set of claim 2 in which the link is made of
rubber.
17. The toy race set of claim 2 in which the link is made of black
Kraton polymer 3200.
18. The toy race set of claim 17 in which the link has a hardness
of Shore 70-75.
19. The toy race set of claim 2 in which the means connecting the
link to the vehicle generally maintains the link in a fixed angular
relationship to the vehicle at the connected end.
20. The toy race set of claim 2 in which the free wheeling vehicle
has a body substantially the same as the body of the lead vehicle
but without a motor and includes a weight added for stability to
compensate for the omitted motor.
Description
BACKGROUND ART
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to propelled toy vehicles and more
particularly to simulated team racing vehicle sets.
2. Background Art
Propelled toy vehicles have long been used in play situations
simulating chases and races. Slot car race sets have been a
particularly popular form of propelled toy vehicles used for race
play. The coupling of a propelled toy vehicle with a drone vehicle
for simulating chase play has been used in situations where the
movement of the vehicles are not restrained by a track. Examples of
such prior art linked cars are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,782,559,
British Patent Application 746,262 and German Pat. No. 1,914,792 as
well as in co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 462,753 assigned to
the same assignee as this application. Such prior art linked
vehicles, all of which have a substantially rigid connecting bar
between the powered vehicle and the drone vehicle, are not well
suited for simulated race play on a track. Accordingly there
remains a need for linked toy vehicles for simulated race play on
slot car tracks.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is concerned with providing toy slot car
racing team vehicle sets. This and other objects and advantages of
the invention are achieved by providing a powered lead towing
vehicle and a drone vehicle with a resilient tow link. In order to
control lateral movement of the drone vehicle, the tow link is, in
cross section, substantially wider than it is high.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
For a better understanding of the present invention reference may
be had to the accompanying drawing in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a slot car racing set
embodying the present invention;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged scale perspective view of the drone
vehicle;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged scale top pla view showing a portion of a
slot car track with part of the vehicles broken away;
FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken generally along the line 4--4 of
FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is an enlarged scale perspective view of a tow link;
FIG. 6 is a top plan view of a portion of curved track with
schematic showings of the vehicles; and
FIG. 7 is a top plan view of a portion of curved track with
schematic showings of the vehicles.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to the drawing in which like parts are designated by
like reference numerals thoughout the several views, there is shown
in FIG. 1 a portion of a slot car racing set 10 having a track 12
made up of a number of connectable straight and curved sections. As
in commercially available slot car racing sets, each track section
has a generally flat roadbed 14 with substantially parallel, spaced
apart slots 16. On either side of each slot 16, and parallel to the
slot, are contact strips 18. Extending upwardly from the outside
edge of each track section is a retaining sidewall 20 which, for
toy cars that are approximately three and one-quarter inches long
by one and one-half inches wide with wheel diameters of about
one-half inch and a wheelbase of about one and one-half inches, are
generally three-eights of an inch on straight sections of track and
up to about one-half inch high on curved sections. The track
sections are connected together both mechanically and electrically
as in commercially available slot car sets. A separate controller
22, connectable to normal household line current, is electrically
connected to a respective set of track contact strips 18.
Race set 10 is provided with race car teams 25. Each team has a
lead, powered, tow car 30 with a body 32 that may be of any
convenient race car styling. As in commercially available slot car
sets, the car has wheels 34 made of a soft rubber material having a
high coefficient of friction. The soft rubber wheels 34 are
preferably inboard of the body 32 of the car which is made of a
considerably harder plastic such as polystyrene or polyethylene.
Lead car 30 is provided with an electrical motor 36 which obtains
electrical power through brushes or wipers 38 that are in
electrical contact with one pair of strips 18. The motor 36 is
drivingly connected to the rear set of wheels. A depending guide
pin 40 rides in the slot 16 between the respective contact strips.
As long as the friction between the wheels 34 and the roadbed 14 is
not overcome by centrifugal force as the car speeds through curves,
the car is maintained within a particular defined path around the
track. Behind the rear set of wheels is a downwardly depending rear
guard plate 42. Extending back from the guard plate 42 within the
body 32 is a generally horizontally disposed boss 44 with an
aperture 46.
One or more motorless drone cars 50 are provided for each race team
25. Each drone has a hard plastic body 52 that may conveniently be
styled, or have a color, the same as the body 32 of the lead car to
identify them as a team. Drones 50 may have the same high
coefficient of friction wheels 34 as the powered lead tow car 30
but they are free wheeling. Ahead of the front set of wheels is a
downwardly depending guard plate 54 with a forwardly extending
generally horizontally disposed boss 56 having an aperture 58. A
rear guard plate 60 depends behind the rear wheels and a generally
horizontal disposed boss 62 with an aperture 64 extends behind
plate 60 within the body shell 52. Since the drone cars 50 do not
have a motor, a weight or magnet 66 may be included to increse the
stability of the towed drone cars but still permit the drone to
change lanes as a result of centrifugal force when the lead car
enters a curve.
Interconnecting the lead tow car 30 and the drone 50 is resilient
tow link 70 that is preferably longer than the vehicle wheelbase or
about two inches long. Rubber, or more particularly black Kraton
polymer 3200 with a hardness of Shore 70-75 is used for the tow
link. As is perhaps best illustrated in FIG. 5, the tow link has a
substantially greater width than the height or thickness of the
link. A width of at least twice the height or thickness has been
found to work well with toy cars that are about three and
one-quarter inches long. Projecting upwardly from adjacent each end
of thelink 70 is a pin 72 that fits tightly into one of the
apertures 46, 58 or 64 in order to connect a lead tow car 30 with a
drone 50 or one drone with another following drone. Alternatively
the lead car and the drone car may be provided with pins that would
fit tightly into apertures in the tow link. The tight fit maintains
the connected end of the link in a fixed angular relationship with
the car to which it is connected.
Because of the tight fit of each of the pins 72 in any one of the
apertures 46, 58 and 64 plus the relatively greater lateral
stability or rigidity of the link 70 resulting from the greater
width, the towed drone 50 is maintained in a generally fixed
lateral relationship with respect to the lead car 30 except in
curved portions of the track. The lead and follower vehicles may be
linked one behind the other or in parallel, as illustrated in FIG.
3. When the vehicles are linked one behind the other, the resulting
centrifugal force as the lead car 30 goes along the inside slot of
a curve will throw the drone car 50 into the outside lane as is
schematically shown in FIG. 6. However, when the vehicles are
linked as illustrated in phantom in FIG. 3, and the lead car 30 is
in the outside slot of a curve, the drone 50 normally positioned by
the link in the inside slot will tend to swing out into the outside
slot as is illustrated in FIG. 7. Since the dronecar will always
tend to be forced outside by centrifugal force, the retaining
sidewalls 20 are particularly necessary in the curves. Linking the
cars one behind the other permits passing by an opponent in the
straightaways while setting the link at an angle will limit
permitted passing to those curves in which the opponent has the
inside lane.
In race simulating play the towed drone car can be used to block an
opponent from passing. Of course, such blocking will sometimes
result in crashes which may further enhance play. It has been found
that there are less crashes when the hard plastic bodies of the
vehicles contact each other as opposed to the softer, higher
coefficient of friction, wheels. Accordingly as has been previously
indicated, the soft wheels are inboard of the harder plastic
bodies. The number of cars on a team may be increased by adding an
additional towed drone 50 behind the first drone.
While a particular embodiment of the present invention has been
shown and described with some modifications, further changes and
modifications will occur to those skilled in the art. It is
intended in the appended claims to cover all such changes and
modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the
present invention.
* * * * *